'Pandering' to Quebecers hurts nation

Jack Granatstein is a former director of the Canadian War Museum

'Pandering' to Quebecers hurts nation -- historian: 'Recipe for discord' Don Butler, CanWest, Nov. 1, 05

OTTAWA - Quebecers dictate Canada's foreign policy to the detriment of its national interest and unity, an eminent historian asserted yesterday.

Canada's decisions to stay out of the Iraq war and the U.S. missile defence program were driven by overwhelming opposition in Quebec -- views not shared to the same degree by the rest of Canada, Jack Granatstein told the annual Ottawa conference of the Canadian Defence & Foreign Affairs Institute.

"French-Canadians have largely shaped our defence and foreign policy since 1968," Mr. Granatstein said. "If it's bad policy to let Canadian Jews or Canadian Muslims have undue influence on Canadian policy toward Israel, it's similarly bad policy to let French-Canadians determine Canadian foreign policy." [. . . . ]

Funny, if I say something like this, I'm not worth paying attention to. Maybe, it's Jack's way with words. Or could it be that more and more Canadians are noting this, but Jack has the gravitas of scholarship and position to speak for them?

There is a massive area of Canada which is noting that their views have been ignored for too long. I think they have had enough of it.

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